23. Georgia (14-2)
Prior to this week, Georgia was starting to catch some public attention. Their record was impressive, stockpiling wins mostly over weaker competition, though that schedule did include a nice win against St. John’s. Coming off last week’s toughie at Ole Miss it was a wonder if these Bulldogs would just fade away against the toughness of the SEC but this week certainly changed that trajectory.
Georgia’s best week of the season began with an 82-69 home win over a Top 10 Kentucky squad on Tuesday. Among the game changers were Asa Newell with 17 points and 7 rebounds and Blue Cain adding 15 points and 8 rebounds. After that great victory, they completed a perfect week with another ranked win, knocking off Oklahoma 72-62. A balanced effort saw both Newell and Dakota Leffew putting up 15 points on what was a dreadful long-range shooting day for the Bulldogs.
There have been days when the shots aren’t falling or where the defense doesn’t get a ton of stops, but Georgia is showing that they can win all sorts of games and really shined on the big stage this week, notching those two ranked wins. Obviously, winning at home is much easier than on the road and the upcoming schedule is brutal. The Bulldogs head to Tennessee then host Auburn next week, continuing this murderer’s row of a conference season.